No Future
by RobotMuse
Summary: Maria Hill/Tony Stark: Two separate drabbles on the the same subject: Maria's pregnant and Tony is told. Last one's a downer. Please R&R, it's much love. Thanks


**Author's Note  
**Done mainly because the thought of Maria being pregnant is hilarious to me. I mean, thinking about it: People all coming up and cooing and Maria just being like "Stop touching my fucking stomach." Plus: Maria and Tony's Misadventures in Parenting would be golden. Thank you to my lovely betaempty_spelendor.

-----

_No future, right?_

Maria recalled her words clearly, said in a moment of desperation and weakness. He was so damn pathetic and part of her ached when she saw that self-loathing in his eyes -- it was undeserved and deserved at the same time; there was no way to have predicted what had happened, but he had set himself up for the fall months previous.

Now the future was clearer, though just as dark. But it was a future at least.

"Shit," Maria cursed as the second pink line faded into existence. She tossed the test into the trash and leaned back against the tank of the toilet. She sat there a moment, letting out a deep sigh. She guessed she probably ought to tell him then.

Tony was in the makeshift lab in their makeshift safe house. He looked terrible, sickly, and he twitched sometimes. He had ever since the Extremis left his system. At least he was alive. He didn't look up when she walked in, kept focused on whatever piece of tech he was working on. Maria leaned against the door frame, arms crossed over her chest, watching him, waiting to be acknowledged. When he didn't, she shifted a bit and decided to get right to it.

"I'm pregnant."

That made him stop. He dropped the soldering iron and it clanged to the table. He made a hissing sound and quickly picked it back up and put it in its stand.

"Pregnant?" he repeated, finally looking up at her.

"Yeah."

"Mine?"

"Of course it's fucking yours. I haven't had time to sleep with anyone else."

Tony's face soured, "Sorry, sorry, I just--" he sighed, "sorry."

Silence. He ran a hand over his face. Maria watched him. He didn't seem uncomfortable, just tired -- this was the last thing either of them needed right now.

"What are we going to do?" he said with a sigh, looking up at her again.

"What do you want to do?"

Tony blinked, apparently surprised. He smiled gently though.

"It's your body, Maria. I can't force you to one thing or another."

Maria couldn't help but laugh a little. It seemed just a bit absurd coming from Tony, though she couldn't pin down why.

"I've never really wanted kids," she said honestly. She swallowed, "My mother died in childbirth."

Tony nodded, "I'm sorry."

Maria scoffed, "It's not your fault."

Another silence. Tony was looking away from her now. He seemed almost mournful as he looked at the ground.

"Would you be there? If I kept it?"

Tony looked up, almost startled, "Yeah, of course, yeah. I mean, if you want me to be."

Maria nodded, "I'll have to think about it."

"Yeah, that's probably best," he stood now. He walked over to her, "Whatever you want to do, I'll support you."

Maria nodded again and smiled, "Thanks."

Tony returned the smile. He leaned in and kissed her forehead, then took her in an embrace. She couldn't help but be a little surprised -- this was the closest thing to intimate contact they had had since that night. She wrapped her arms around him and rest her head on his shoulder.

"No future, right?" she said quietly.

Tony laughed a little, rubbing a hand down her back, "You have to admit, it's pretty impressive we got it on the first time."

"Yeah. I guess we're just both exceptionally fertile."

Tony laughed and Maria felt it rumble through her own body. He pulled away. He looked at her a moment, a gentle expression on his face.

"What can I do?"

Maria thought for a moment, "Just...don't tell anyone, all right?" The thought of people cooing and congratulating her was annoying enough.

Tony laughed, "Who would I tell? Pepper has...a thing about kids, and no one else is talking to me. Besides, they'd probably think the product of a union between Tony Stark and Maria Hill would be Satan incarnate."

Maria smiled out of obligation. He joked, but she knew it all still hurt him more than he'd ever let on. She watched him, telling herself that feeling that pang in her chest was what got her in this situation in the first place.

---

_No future, right?_

Tony recalled the words as he looked down at her. Maria was as beautiful as ever, even in death. They had cleaned the blood from her face, washed the scorch marks from her shoulders, made her look human again.

"It's her," he told the coroner simply.

The man nodded, telling Tony it was a formality at most and thanking him for his time, he had been the only contact they could reach. When he said it, Tony realized he knew nothing of Maria's personal life -- no family history, no knowledge of friends outside the work place, no idea if she was the type to curl up on the couch with a book on Saturday nights or if she would go out with the friends she must have had.

Tony looked a little while longer, but forced himself to turn to leave.

"Ah, Mister Stark," the sheepish voice of the coroner stopped him, "I feel like I should tell you...she was six weeks pregnant."

The feeling that came over him was odd. It was dizzying like a head rush, but his body felt unnaturally heavy. He gave a jerky nod and might have said something but he couldn't recall. His stomach was doing strange things and his feet were acting on their own. He wasn't sure how he had gotten to the car in the parking garage but he managed to keep it together until he was sitting in the driver's seat. Then he let himself collapse forward, head on hands, hands on stirring wheel.

Six weeks. It fit. It seemed like such a long time ago, but it had only been six weeks since that night. It fit. The child had been his, there was no doubt in his mind. He wondered if she had even known.

He hadn't even known her. It wasn't the first time he slept with someone he knew virtually nothing about, but it was the first time he had sent that someone to their death. She had died because he had needed an errand boy. And she had been pregnant.


End file.
